10 Great Hidden State Parks

September 12, 2013

You won't find a flat Midwestern landscape at this park with 300-million-year-old sandstone cliffs overlooking a deep gorge. The valley was cut by Pea's Creek, a tributary of the Des Moines River. "It's one of Iowa's best. It's a little bit of a Grand Canyon, but on a much smaller scale," Dubi says. Maple, oak and hickory trees provide memorable fall color.